Tag Archives: Groupon

Happy Birthday Chicago! Uncork your favorite bottle of wine or champagne and toast to Chicago’s 178th birthday was held on March 4, 2015. Crank up your iPhone as you listen to Frank Sinatra sing “My Kind of Town“; originally part of the musical score for Robin and the 7 Hoods, a 1964 musical film starring several members of the Rat Pack.

Cover of Robin and the Seven Hoods

Chicago is famous for many things including gangsters like Al Capone and the city definitely has some offers that you can’t refuse:

Chicago is also famous for sports teams: Bears, Bulls, Hawks, Cubs and Sox. We have had pretty good record for start-ups: Kraft, Motorola, Baxter, Sara Lee and don’t forget Groupon just to name a few.

Chicago is home to a plethora of superlatives: our higher learning institutons are world-class with some of the best business schools in the world like University of Chicago and Northwestern. The city is brimming with world-class chefs and we have some of the best restaurants in the world like Charlie Trotters and Alinea.

Chicago is a city of neighborhoods with distinctive architecture and ethnic roots.

Map of Chicago’s community areas, grouped by color by “side” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

But one or our most endearing and enduring blessings is our world-class architecture! Generally, to celebrate Chicago’s birthday, some of her architectural shining stars will turn blue including:

Bill Baker is a structural engineer who works at Skidmore, Owings and Merrill‘s (SMO) Chicago office in the landmark, 17 story Sante Fe Building. He can be credited with more supertall buildings of over 1000 feet than any other structural engineer in the world including the Trump Tower. The “Burl Khalifa” in Dubai is world’s tallest building at 160 stories. It is almost twice as tall as the building formerly known as the Sears Tower in Chicago. Bill was instrumental in designing The Burl with architect Adrian Smith at SMO.

The distinctive clock tower of the Wrigley Building reminds me of Big Ben in London. There are 250,000 glistening glazed terra cotta tiles covering the classical structure that was completed in 1924 by Graham, Anderson, Probst and White. Quite appropriate for the great “White City.” The beautiful neo-gothic Tribune Tower is across the street from the Wrigley building. The 26 foot Sculpture of Marilyn Monroe is next to the Tribune Tower.

I love the juxtaposition of the classic architecture with the modern architecture of buildings like the sleek Trump Tower. There’s a great view of the Wrigley Clock from Trump’s 16th floor restaurant aptly named “Sixteen.” They have an outstanding Sunday Brunch so why not celebrate Chicago’s Birthday party there!

Chicago is a mecca for world-class museums, restaurants and hotels with plenty of “Vino con Vista” opportunities. The Michelin Guide for Chicago was released in November 2011.

Thanksgiving is a great time to open a special bottle to share with family and friends, but what will you be drinking and what does the wine world do? We asked some winemakers, sommeliers and writers. Eduardo Dingler has also provided his top 10 wine recommendations for the big day...What wines to open on Thanksgiving? From winemakers to sommeliers... The po […]

Black Friday is upon us and with the festive season fast approaching, the deals are stacking up for some interesting tequilas from around the this small region in Mexico. We've rounded up some of the top tequila deals below. The spirit of Mexico, Tequila has gained popularity moving a way from the image of being a “shot” spirit, to …Continue reading » T […]

Black Friday is upon us and with the festive season fast approaching, the deals are stacking up for some interesting whiskies from around the world. We've rounded up some of the top whisk(e)y deals below. Credit: les polders / Alamy See our round-up of offers... The post Top whisky deals for Black Friday appeared first on Decanter.

This year’s sale has seen 828 barrels of wine fetch nearly 14.2 million euros, beating last year’s record and reflecting excitement around the Burgundy 2018 vintage.Hospices de Beaune 2018 sale sets new record. Hospices de Beaune 2018 auction fetches 14.2 million euros... The post Hospices de Beaune 2018 auction sets new record appeared first on Decanter. […]

Andrew Jefford wades through the autumn deluges.Overflowing river in Lagrasse, in the Aude area of Languedoc-Roussillon in October 2018. It's been a challenging 2018 but there is still untapped potential here... The post Jefford on Monday: Languedoc-Roussillon’s eventful year appeared first on Decanter.

An abundance of good quality fruit in these top vintages means that châteaux 'second wines' are particularly worth a look. See the top wines from this panel tasting; many of the opulent 2009s are ready to drink, while 2010 still has some way to go. This article was originally published in Decanter magazine's December 2016 issue and is now avai […]

Jim Budd is Regional Chair for the Loire at the Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) 2019.Jim Budd Jim Budd moved from education to wine in 1988, and has contributed to Decanter since 1989. The post DWWA Regional Chair for Loire: Jim Budd appeared first on Decanter.

Richard Baudains is the Regional Chair for Veneto at the Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) 2019.Richard Baudains Richard Baudains was born and bred in Jersey in the Channel Islands and trained to be a teacher of English as a foreign language in order to satisfy his wanderlust. The post DWWA Regional Chair Veneto: Richard Baudains appeared first on Decanter.

Stephen Skelton MW is Regional Chair for the UK at the Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) 2019.Stephen Skelton MW Stephen Skelton MW is a consultant to the English wine industry and is involved with planting vineyards for the production of both still and sparkling wine. The post DWWA Regional Chair for the UK: Stephen Skelton MW appeared first on Decanter.